Along with the gods

DIRECTOR: Kim Yong-hwa  LEAD CAST:  Ha Jung-woo, Cha Tae-hyun, Ju Ji-hoon & Kim Hyang-gi  SCREENWRITER: Kim Yong-hwa  PRODUCER:  Kim Yong-hwa & Won Dong-yeon  EDITOR: Hye-jin Kim, Zino Kim & Na-young Nam  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Bang Jun-seok   GENRE: Action/Sci-Fi/Adventure  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Kim Byung-seo  DISTRIBUTOR: Lotte Entertainment  LOCATION: South Korea  RUNNING TIME: 139 minutes

Technical assessment: 3.5

Moral assessment: 4

CINEMA rating: V 13

MTRCB rating: PG

When firefighter Kim Ja-Hong (Cha Tae-hyun) dies in the line of duty, he is greeted by a trio of guardians and their boss reaper. They become his escort to the after life. Since he died by saving someone else’s life, he qualifies to the so-called paragons—and could possibly reincarnate  within 49 days should he be acquitted at the seven trials of seven different levels of hell. In the same way, the trio of guardians will be granted reincarnation too, so they would do all their best to guide Kim so he will be acquitted. Kim should not be found guilty of sins of betrayal, violence, indolence, etc. However, a certain angry spirit will come which would make it even harder for Kim to pass the seven trials.

Along with the Gods gives a different take on what happens to a soul in the afterlife. It combines Buddhism’s law on karma and reincarnation and the Christian belief in eternity and the concept of seven deadly sins. However it is put, the treatment is very much an existentialist view on life. The film is technically superior using GCF (computer graphics), green screens and with superior actors in the cast. The story is dramatically woven with bits of fantasy, adventure, and at some point, horror without losing its core of heart wrenching human drama.

Along with the Gods makes one reflect on the most significant virtues and values that human beings should strive for in life—kindness, forgiveness, heroism, generosity, compassion, love—as all these and more would make one accountable in the afterlife. The body dies but the soul lives on and whether one has been good or bad would determine the fate of the soul. Although the complexities of human weakness is shown in the film, still, the film challenges each one to rise above weakness—to sacrifice if need be. All good deeds and good intentions will not be left unnoticed. In the end, one’s heart will be judged as to how much love it was able to give while living on earth. The concept of sin may be too much for the very young audiences so CINEMA still recommends that children should be accompanied and properly guided in watching this film.

Game Night

GAME NIGHT

Direction: John Francis Daley;  Cast: Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Billy Magnussen, Sharon Horgan, Lamorne Morris;  Screenplay: Mark Perez; Cinematography: Barry Petersoni; Editing: Jamie Gross, Gregory Plotkin, David Egan; Music: Cliff Martinez; Producers: John Davis, Jason Bateman, John Fox, James Garavente; Genre: Black Comedy;  Location: USA; Distributor: Warner Bros Pictures  Running Time: 100 minutes

Technical Assessment             2.5

Moral Assessment:  2.5

CINEMA Rating: V14 –V18

Max (Bateman) and Annie (McAdams) love parlor games and host a routine weekend game night with friends, except Gary (Plemons), a deadpan awkward policeman. When Max’s obnoxious brother Brooks (Chandler) shows up and arranges to host the game night at his place and initiates an interactive role-playing mystery game wagering his Corvette as the prize for the winner. Max who has always been insecure of his brother’s success and Annie who finds Brook’s insufferable decide to make sure they beat him. During the game, an actor pretending to be an FBI agent arrives and narrates the supposed mystery plot but in the middle of his explanation, he and Brooks are assaulted and kidnapped. Believing all is part of the act, the 3 couples try to solve the mystery using clues and technology. As the 3 couples realize that they no longer are playing a game, Brooks reveals his own insecurities and life of crime. In a twist of events, Gary helps in rescuing the group but also is revealed to have taken part of the kidnap plan in his attempt to be invited in game night.

Game Night begins as a usual run-of-the-mill romantic comedy but slowly churns into a vulgar over thought cute action thriller. The spirited casting salvages the frantic material. However, the constricted characterization leaves but little room for them to explore and expand. The script is a wobbly collection of hurried plots and daft scenes. There are laughs and hysterical moments only to be dampened when the audience regains sense and realizes the dullness of the director’s attempts.

In the pretense of comedy and mystery the movie tries very hard to talk about sibling rivalry and brotherly love. It shows how jealousy and miscommunication are detrimental not only to a healthy sibling relationship but to each other’s growth as persons.  Then there is the standard used to measure success—should it only be one’s material and financial gains? Does a healthy and happy marital relationship not count?  Fortunately, the movie tried to emphasize the value of the family and friends’ compassion and support in the face of danger, pain and failure. However, the operative word is “tried” because it wanted to get there but did not arrive in time to save the frenzied movie.

The moving spirit behind Caviezel's Luke

In an interview, Catholic actorJim Caviezel, who played Jesus Christ in "Passion of the Christ" and is currently starring as Luke in " Paul, Apostle of Christ", says " I act in films that can bring the most souls back to God."  REad about it here:

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/jim-caviezel-i-act-in-films-that-can-bring-the-most-souls-back-to-god

Mary Magdalene

DIRECTOR:  Garth Davis  LEAD CAST: Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tahar Rahim  SCREENWRITER:  Helen Edmundson, Philippa Goslett  PRODUCER:  Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Liz Watts  EDITOR:  Alexandre de Franceschi, Melanie Ann Oliver  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:   Hildur Guðnadóttir, Jóhann Jóhannsson  GENRE: historical drama  CINEMATOGRAPHER: Greig Fraser  DISTRIBUTOR: Focus Features  LOCATION:  United States, United Kingdom, Australia  RUNNING TIME:   120 minutes

Technical assessment:  3

Moral assessment:  3

CINEMA rating:  V14

In the beginning, Mary Magdalene is shown as an ordinary woman living on the shores of Galilee, going about her daily duties of cleaning the fishnets and minding the housework.  But she is far from being ordinary in that she—a lover of solitude—rejects the family tradition of women getting married and becoming housewives and mothers in a patriarchal society.  Then Jesus comes along—the son of the carpenter from Nazareth who goes around with a bunch of followers from the working class, teaching, preaching, healing—who asks her “Do you have the courage to follow what you hear?” And then Mary leaves her unfulfilling life, believing she has found meaning in following Him.

The film is well meaning and intends to dump the overused image of Mary Magdalene as the former prostitute who was converted into a spiritual groupie after being rid of seven devils.  The choice of Roony Mara as Mary—porcelain complexion bereft of makeup, no sultry pouting lips, thank you—is deliberate, for the actress could personify the I-mean-business feminism and strength of character the director wants for this Magdalene.  Mara’s performance is good, but fails to touch the heart.  She portrays Mary Magdalene as an intelligent disciple, a chaste confidante of Jesus, but even the scenes with the Savior often seem glassy and put on.  Mara is more in her element when displaying spunk in scenes with Peter the hothead (Ejiofor) and Judas the firebrand (Rahim).  The cinematography deserves superlatives for projecting the arid landscape in all its radiance.  The production set gets kudos, too, for meticulously bringing to life that particular time in history.

Whatever is said of Mary Magdalene—from Scorsese to Pasolini to Lloyd-Weber—no one can deny her significant role in salvation history.  Whether one subscribes to the idea of “sola scriptura” or welcomes the assertions of apocryphal literature, Mary Magdalene—the woman who first saw Jesus’ empty tomb—stands as witness to the truth that Christ does bring forgiveness and His friendship to the humble, regardless of social status or gender.

Paul, Apostle of Christ

DIRECTOR: Andrew Hyatt  LEAD CAST:  James Faulkner, Jim Caviezel, Olivier Martinez, John Lynch, Joanne Whalley  SCREENWRITER: Terence Berden, Andrew Hyatt  PRODUCER: Terence Berden, David Zelon,  Jim Caviezel  EDITOR: Dorota Kobiela & Justyna WierszynskaScott Richter  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Jan A.P. Kaczmarek  GENRE: Biblical/ historical drama  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Gerardo Madrazo  DISTRIBUTOR: Columbia Pictures  LOCATION: Malta  RUNNING TIME: 108 minutes

Technical assessment: 3

Moral assessment: 4

CINEMA rating: V14

Paul, Apostle of Christ is the story of Christianity’s most traveled apostle. It is 67 AD and an old, beaten-up Paul (James Faulkner), leader of the young Christian community in Rome, is locked up and languishing in the Mamertine prison. Christians are falsely accused by Emperor Nero of burning down half of Rome and are relentlessly persecuted. They are beaten, burned alive like torches to light the streets, crucified or thrown to the lions for sport. Greek physician Luke (Jim Caviezel), manages to sneak into prison to assist his friend Paul, and to get whatever message he has for the fearful Christian community headed by Aquila (John Lynch) and Priscilla (Joanne Whalley). Luke writes down Paul’s story and his thoughts about Jesus’ message of love and mercy, which eventually finds its way into the Acts of the Apostles. The prison warden Mauritius (Olivier Martinez) is intrigued by Paul and is suspicious of Luke. When the warden’s daughter gets seriously ill and no doctor or sacrifice to Roman gods could heal her, he turns to Luke for help.

A good number of films have been produced to tell the story of St. Paul, and Andrew Hyatt’s attempt focused on Paul’s later life, when he was aging and imprisoned in Rome. Through flashbacks, we learn of Stephen’s martyrdom and Paul’s conversion from being a persecutor of Christians to becoming an apostle of Christ. Faulkner essays a tortured Paul with restraint and dignity; he and Caviezel give us the Paul and Luke so human we see the Bible come to life. Production design and make-up are spot on. Though based on some historical facts and personages, Paul, Apostle of Christ is fiction. Hyatt weaves in the narrative of Mauritius, his family and the life of the early Christian community to the friendship between Paul and Luke. Don’t expect the magnificent cinematography of Cecil B. DeMille’s biblical epic, The Ten Commandments, either.  Filmed in Malta where St. Paul actually went, Hyatt opted to show bodies torched and Roman soldiers stabbing Christians rather than the spectacle of believers being devoured by lions in the Colosseum or the Circo Massimo. The film employs the chiaroscuro technique, to stress the fear and sufferings of believers, and the scenes in prison used the darkness to convey risk and secrecy.  For a historical/biblical drama, the film spends so much time in telling/talking rather than showing, which less interested viewers might find boring.

Bible scholars argue that there is no historical evidence that Luke ever met Paul. (Paul’s second letter to Timothy is deutero-Pauline, that is, not written by Paul himself.) Faulkner’s Paul is a tortured man, guilt-ridden and questioning: “Is this all there is to it?” This is not the Paul we read in the Acts of the Apostles and his Epistles. Paul is of “robust character”—he never forgot his being a persecutor of Christians, but he was not guilt-ridden as the film suggests. Paul wrote: "Christ loved me and gave himself for me!" God's love and mercy is so much greater than our sins. Paul was awed by this and he felt compelled to share it with others. The title of the film is Paul, Apostle of Christ. Apostle means one who is sent, to proclaim the good news. The film barely shows the greatness of Paul as an Apostle of Christ, but its over-powering message is God’s mercy and grace. One sees the humanity of the characters and the struggles they all go through, vacillating between faith and doubt, courage and fear, strength and weakness. The early Christians and Saints were not superheroes but flawed human beings with whom the audience can relate.

To be a Christian means to “carry one’s cross” with love, to endure with lively hope, and to trust in God who is rich in mercy and grace. Though falsely accused, tortured, beaten, and imprisoned, Paul never retaliates and prefers to suffer in silence. He says: “Only love can overcome evil.” Luke does not refuse to minister to the daughter of their jailer Mauritius who worships Roman gods. Priscilla and Aquila welcome everyone in their Christian hideout with no questions asked, to tend their wounds, offer shelter and sustenance, endangering not only the community but their lives as well. Casius instigates a revolt among the Christians to avenge the death of young orphan Tarquin (Daryl Vassallo) and others. He attempts to free Paul and Luke from prison, but the two refuse revenge and violence, saying: “The only way is love.” And when some Christians were to be thrown to the lions the next day, Luke reminds them that the pain will “only be for a moment.” “Our suffering on earth is little compared to the joy that awaits us in heaven.” The scene where they pray the “Our Father” for themselves and for the daughter of Mauritius (who ordered their execution) is deeply moving. Would that all Filipino Christians in our day follow the way of non-violence, charity, and compassion as Paul, Luke and the early Christians did. And may all who have been persecuted for their faith find solace and courage in Paul, Apostle of Christ.

Adults are cautioned to avoid bringing children to watch the film. It carries very violent and disturbing scenes of burning bodies, immolation and bloody deaths, etc., some of children.

A Wrinkle in Time

DIRECTOR: Ava DuVernay  LEAD CAST: Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon & Storm Reid 

SCREENWRITER: Jeff Stockwell, Jennifer Lee & Madeleine L’Engle  PRODUCER:  Jim Whitaker & Catherine Hand  EDITOR: Spencer Averick  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Ramin Djawadi  GENRE: Adventure/Fantasy  CINEMATOGRAPHER: Tobias A. Schliessler  DISTRIBUTOR: Walt Disney Studios  LOCATION: USA  RUNNING TIME: 114 mins.

Technical assessment: 4

Moral assessment: 4

CINEMA rating: VA

MTRCB rating:  GP

Teenagre Meg Murry (Storm Reid) and her younger brother Charles Wallace Murry (Deric McCabe) cannot accept the sudden disappearance of their physicist father Dr. Alex Murry (Chris Pine).  This somehow affects the personality of Meg who is full of insecurities and always wishes to be like others. Meantime the family believes that the father has been led to another world while experimenting on astrophysics in his lab, and therefore must be rescued.  One night, a stranger Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon) comes to the Murry house and talks to Charles Wallace about space travels.  In time a second stranger arrives,  Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling) who speaks in quotes about tesseract and suggests the possibilities of finding their missing father.  Soon a third stranger comes into the scene—the gigantic Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey). The three strangers confess their identity as empowered astral travelers and become instrumental in solving the mystery behind their missing father.  Meg is determined to take all the risks that includes endangering the life of her brother to be able  to rescue and bring Alex back to complete their family.

A Wrinkle In Time features an interesting subject of astral travel and the transformation of an insecure teenage girl into a strong-willed person who subjects herself to many risks for a mission to reunite all members of the family. Plot development is marked by build up of suspense without necessarily introducing the characters such as the three women strangers, those in the different planets, and even those in the school setting. Nevertheless, the director succeeds in his treatment of combining the personal and family crisis of Meg’s character with the suspense and adventure of her encounters with beings from other dimensions. Acting portrayal is good especially Reid. The cinematography has been creative and cohesively helpful in the flow of the story. The technology of virtual reality that has been rampantly used in contemporary films impressively works best in this movie to the delight of the viewers. Overall, A Wrinkle in Time  presents a suspense and adventure film genre with more meaning and sincerity in resolving conflicts personally, in the family, and in society.

How can you appreciate others if you do not appreciate yourself?  And when do we start accepting our individual uniqueness and value as a person? The character of Meg initially revolves around this personal issue and almost pulls her to the lowest point of hating herself. She is envious of others persons’ physical attributes and abilities. She wants to be someone else and not the being that is herself.  In reality we can never be what we are not. Likewise acceptance of oneself is the key to overcome this disbelief. Meg does not keep this personal struggle to her mother which is commendable especially at this digital age when most young people opt to open up in social media and the parents seem to be the last to know. The film carries out the sub theme of physics as a branch of science that may be informative to young viewers.  Overall the film is full of positive messages that may be good reference for similar undertakings. (IBD)

The Titan

DIRECTOR: Lennart Ruff  LEAD CAST: Sam Worthington, Taylor Schilling, Tom Wilkinson, Agyness Deyn  SCREENWRITER: Max Hurwitz  PRODUCER: Arash Amel, Fred Berger, Leon Clarance, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Ben Pugh  EDITOR: Ann-Carolin Biesenbach  MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Fil Eisler  GENRE: Sci Fi, Fantasy, Drama CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jan-Marcello Kahl  DISTRIBUTOR: Digi-Optic Films  LOCATION: Spain  RUNNING TIME: 97 minutes

Technical assessment: 3

Moral assessment: 3

CINEMA rating: V13

MTRCB rating: PG

Earth will soon become inhabitable, man will become extinct. Professor Martin Collingwood (Tom Wilkinson) leads a military experiment to create a super being that can survive the harsh conditions in Titan, a moon of the planet Saturn. The plan is to relocate humanity there to avoid extinction. Rick Janssen (Sam Worthington) volunteers to be part of the experiment, and he survives the battery of chemicals and foreign matter introduced in his body. Other volunteers are not as lucky. They become rabid, some implode, others slaughter their own family and are subsequently exterminated by the military. Rick’s wife Dr. Abigail Janssen (Taylor Schilling) finds out why: she discovers that Professor Collingwood is not just enhancing the human species, he is transforming it into some other species. Abigail attempts to extricate her husband—who by now no longer looks human—from the experiment.

The Titan is one of those movies that can hold the suspense as it shows you the gradual (read that, slow) transformation of Rick’s face and body into something other than human. It’s a combination of music, special effects, a play of lights, and a camera that understands how to guide our path of vision. The Rick here is the same Sam Worthington of James Cameron’s blockbuster Avatar. Here again, we see his human face only at the beginning, and for the rest of the movie, he is transformed into an alien. He seems to have mastered acting with prosthetic makeup because he does deliver better characterization as a half-human. As to Tom Wilkinson’s Professor Collingwood, he does not interest us enough, we don’t see the depth nor the mania of his conviction to create a super being. Agyness Deyn as the professor’s assistant puzzles us with her sudden change of allegiance, and it took us some time to figure out why she was fleeing alongside Dr. Janssen.

Arash Amel who wrote the story describes The Titan as a love story, revolving around Rick’s devotion to his son, reading to him at night, hoping the experiment would ensure that his son would have a future—these are family values we hold dear in our culture. More so is Rick’s devotion to his wife and their intimate understanding of each other, connecting without speaking, and believing in the infinite goodness of each other—both Worthington and Schilling deliver these messages quite effectively. But more than the love story, what stands out is the representation of the two faces of science: a science that upholds humanity and a science that kills it. Rick is dying and he needs to be transported to Titan where he can survive with his now evolved biological makeup. But Rick is resisting it because his mind tells him he is first and foremost a father and a husband. Professor Collingwood wants to inject Rick with a chemical that would erase Rick’s memory. Abigail knows that if she allows Collingwood to do that, Rick will lose his only link to her and their son, and to his own humanity. What a good message from a movie that, although not as amazing and grand as Avatar, is nevertheless illuminating. (ME)

I kill giants

DIRECTOR: Andes Walter  LEAD CAST: Madison Wolfe, Imogen Poots, Sydney Wade, Rory Jackson & Zoe Saldana  SCREENWRITER: Joe Kelly  PRODUCER:  Chris Columbus & company  EDITOR: Lars Wissing  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Laurent Perez Del Mar  GENRE: Fantasy/Drama  CINEMATOGRAPHER: Rasmus Heise  DISTRIBUTOR: RLJE Films  LOCATION: Belgium, China, United Kingdom, USA  RUNNING TIME: 106 minutes

Technical assessment: 3.5

Moral assessment:  3.5

CINEMA rating:  V14

Fifth-grader Barbara (Madison Wolfe), although intelligent, is unable to face the realities of life, especially the impending death of her mother from cancer. She isolates herself—to the point of building an indoor fort in the house the shares with her siblings—making solitary sojourns into the forest or the beach, living in an imaginary world of dragons and giants.  Believing giants are a threat to her and the community, Barbara sets traps in the forest to kill them.  Due to her eccentric ways, Barbara is often bullied by classmates who see her as weird, bummed out, and a loser.  Then a British girl comes along—Sophia (Sydney Wade) who befriends her and listens to her with sympathy, just like the school psychologist, Ms. Molle (Zoe Saldana), who is the soul of patience and compassion in her efforts to help Barbara.

The affecting performance of the 15-year-old newcomer Wolfe as the main character is the strongest asset of the movie.  Wolfe is able to wed vulnerability and spunk in her role, allowing the viewer to suspend disbelief and see the world as Barbara sees it.  The costumes and details in the production set—particularly Barbara’s gadgets and her basement retreat—contribute much to Barbara’s characterization, while Zaldana’s acting provides a worthy stimulus to Wolfe’s.  Some scenes drag, though, reducing the impact of the more powerful sequences, like the final confrontation between Barbara and the giant.  A vital disclosure is made in the last quarter of the movie, making the ending a trifle too abrupt and weakening the denouement.

I Kill Giants is not about computer generated robotic monsters and monstrous robots vying for the oohs and aahs of the audience, but is about how young persons resort to fantasy as an escape mechanism. It shows the value of dedicated school officials who will go an extra mile to save a hurting soul; it highlights the beauty of naivete, and the power of trust to inspire trust in another.   What initially appears as a villain (spoiler coming!) turns out to be the savior, enlightening an angry person and clearing the path to redemption, and eventually, joy.